Ludwig II of Bavaria

Ludwig II, who lived from 25 August 1845 to 13 June 1886 and is also called the Swan King or the Fairy Tale King, was King of Bavaria from 1864 until his death. He ascended the throne at eighteen, and two years later Bavaria and its allies were defeated in the Austro-Prussian War, after which the kingdom came under Prussian dominance and joined the newly unified German Empire in 1871 despite Ludwig's wish to preserve Bavarian independence. As his political power narrowed, Ludwig withdrew increasingly from the day-to-day business of government in favor of extravagant artistic and architectural projects, commissioning the lavish palaces of Neuschwanstein Castle, Linderhof Palace and Herrenchiemsee, and becoming a devoted patron of the composer Richard Wagner. He financed these projects from his own private royal revenues rather than state funds, though he borrowed heavily and resisted every attempt by his ministers to restrain his spending, and that extravagance was ultimately used as grounds to have him declared insane, a determination modern historians now question. Ludwig was taken into custody and effectively deposed on 12 June 1886, and he and his doctor were found dead the following day in an episode officially ruled a suicide, a conclusion also now disputed. His unfinished architectural legacy, above all Neuschwanstein, today ranks among Bavaria's most visited tourist attractions.